Laura Gerald, president of the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, will be the keynote speaker for UNC Pembroke’s Spring Commencement ceremonies on May 9 and May 10.
Dr. Gerald leads one of North Carolina’s largest private foundations. A pediatrician born and raised in Lumberton, Gerald joined the trust in 2016, bringing decades of leadership experience in the private, public and nonprofit sectors to the foundation.
Gerald will be awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters during a special presentation at the undergraduate exercise on Saturday, May 10. At the trust, she oversees grantmaking of $20 million annually from more than $600 million in assets. In 2022, under her leadership, the trust announced that it would divest from tobacco and invest $100 million of the foundation’s corpus in socially responsible funds that support economic opportunity for residents of North Carolina. The announcement coincided with the trust’s 75th anniversary and further aligned trust resources with Mrs. Reynolds’ vision of improving the health and quality of life of low-income North Carolina.
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